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9 Troubleshooting, Problems and 'Gotchas'
This section looks at problems which trip up many beginners, starting with some minor syntactic irritations. If you bump into something confusing which isn't listed here, try posting a question to the mailing lists.
9.1 Why can't I write a = 3 (badmatch)?
In Erlang, all variables must start with a capital letter, so you can write A = 3. but not a = 3. In the latter case Erlang complains that this is a "bad match".
In the second version, the 'a' is an atom while 3 is a number. 'a' cannot be pattern matched with 3. The use of capital letters for variables comes from Prolog.
If the terms atom and pattern match are new to you, have a read of the first chapter or two of the Erlang book. (Very roughly, an atom corresponds to an enum in C and pattern matching in this case is like an assert statement.
9.2 Why can't I change the value of a variable?
Erlang only lets you assign a variable once in a function. Some simple examples of when you bump into this are:
1> A = 3. 3 2> A = 4. ** exited: {{badmatch,4},[{erl_eval,expr,3}]} ** 3> A = A + 4. ** exited: {{badmatch,7},[{erl_eval,expr,3}]} **
The usual "workaround" is to use a new variable:
(This behaviour is called "single assignment", and it's considered to be a feature, not a bug. Most functional languages, including ML and Haskell, also behave this way. Among other things, It's nice being able to rely on a certain variable always having the same value.)
9.3 Why do lists of numbers get printed incorrectly?
Sometimes the shell (or a program) prints a list of number in an unexpected way, for instance:
This happens because Erlang represents strings as lists of integers, so if you ask the shell to print a list of integers, the shell takes a guess as to whether you want to see it as a list of numbers or as a string. The shell bases its guess on checking whether or not the list contains all printable characters, so you can force a string to be unprintable:
5> [0, 65, 66, 67]. [0,65,66,67]
In Erlang/OTP R16B and above, you can use the function shell:strings/1 to turn off this behaviour in the shell:
2> shell:strings(false). true 3> [65, 66, 67]. [65,66,67]
A similar problem occurs with io:fwrite(), but in that case you can take direct control by specifying the appropriate formatting character. "~s" always prints the argument as a string, "~w" always prints it as a list.
9.4 Why can't I call arbitrary functions in a guard?
If that was allowed, there would be no guarantee that guards were side-effect free.
Also, it is convenient to be able to program as though guards do not consume any significant amount of execution time. There's a list of BIFs which can be called from within guards in the Erlang book and the standard Erlang spec, some examples are size(), length(), integer(), record().
The "problem" often crops up when using if:
issue_warning() -> if (os:type() == {win32, windows}) -> %% illegal guard ok = io:fwrite("you are using windows\n"); true -> ok = io:fwrite("no problem\n") end.
The solution is usually to use case instead. Case is used much more frequently than if in most Erlang programs:
issue_warning() -> case os:type() of {win32, windows} -> ok = io:fwrite("you are using windows\n"); _ -> ok = io:fwrite("no problem\n") end.
9.5 Why can't I use "or" in a guard?
You can. Since R6A, several guards separated with semicolons perform a logical 'or', for example:
f(N) when (N - 1) > 3; atom(N) -> yes; f(N) -> no.
will return yes for f(5) as well as f(blork). Similarly, the comma is used for logical and:
g(N) when integer(N), N > 5 -> yes; g(N) -> no.
Beware! The semicolon operator doesn't mean exactly the same thing as 'or', for instance f(hello) returns yes , whereas evaluating f(hello - 1) > 3 or atom(hello) returns a badarith error. The first example, f(), is defined as having the same effect as writing:
f(N) when (N - 1) > 3 -> yes; f(N) when atom(N) -> yes; f(N) -> no.
9.6 Why does 'catch' give me a syntax error?
It seems natural enough to write
2> A = catch 1/0. ** 2: syntax error before: 'catch' **
But the parsing rules for Erlang are a bit unexpected here, catch binds less tightly than you might expect it to. To make it parse the way you really want:
3> A = (catch 1/0). {'EXIT',{badarith,[{erl_eval,eval_op,3}, {erl_eval,expr,3}, {erl_eval,exprs,4}, {shell,eval_loop,2}]}}
9.7 What is a sticky directory?
This typically crops up when playing with examples from the old (last century) Erlang book, for instance:
1> c(sets.erl). {error,sticky_directory}
The problem is that there already is a standard library module called 'sets'. The Erlang runtime system is protecting you.
The easiest solution is to rename your module, e.g. to mysets.erl. It is also possible to 'un-stick' the directory containing the library module.
9.8 Why won't my distributed Erlang nodes communicate?
For Erlang nodes to be able to communicate, you need
A working tcp network between the nodes. On unix systems you can check this by using telnet, though a working telnet doesn't guarantee that enough of your network is working, e.g. DNS problems throw a spanner in Erlang's distribution mechanisms.
The nodes to use the same node naming scheme (you cannot have a system where some nodes use fully qualified names and others use short names).
The nodes must agree to use the same "magic security cookie".
Here's an example of how to create two nodes on different machines called martell and grolsch and verify that they're connected. On one machine:
~ >rlogin martell Last login: Sat Feb 5 20:40:52 from super ~ >erl -sname first_node Eshell V18.104.22.168 (abort with ^G) (first_node@martell)1> erlang:set_cookie(first_node, nocookie). true
And on the other
~ >rlogin grolsch Last login: Thu Feb 3 10:54:20 from :0 ~ >erl -sname second_node Eshell V126.96.36.199 (abort with ^G) (second_node@grolsch)1> erlang:set_cookie(second_node, nocookie). true (second_node@grolsch)2> net:ping(first_node@martell). pong (second_node@grolsch)3> rpc:call(first_node@martell, os, type, []). {unix,sunos}
The pong tells us that the connection works, the result of net:ping() is pang when the connection isn't working. The rpc:call() command illustrates executing a command on the other node.
Cookies are a password for Erlang nodes. The example above sets the password to "nocookie", which removes almost all security. Anyone on your network can use your Erlang node for anything, including deleting all of your files.
9.9 When distribution won't work
One simple reason why distribution won't work is if you're combining different versions of Erlang. The OTP group's aim is to maintain backwards compatibility with the two previous major versions of Erlang/OTP, i.e. R13B works with all R13B minor releases as well as with R12B and R11B.
Beyond that, you need to start digging. Erlang nodes communicate by connecting to the epmd daemon. The daemon is started automatically the first time you start a distributed node. For debugging, it's useful to kill it by running epmd -kill ) and then restart it with the debugging flag. You can find epmd in the same directory as the erlang binary:
~ >/otp/releases/otp_beam_sunos5_r6b/erts-4.9.1/bin/epmd -d -d epmd: Sat Feb 5 21:04:39 2000: epmd running - daemon = 0 epmd: Sat Feb 5 21:04:39 2000: try to initiate listening port 4369 epmd: Sat Feb 5 21:04:39 2000: starting epmd: Sat Feb 5 21:04:39 2000: entering the main select() loop
When you start a distributed node on the same system, you should see a message in the epmd window:
epmd: Sat Feb 5 21:07:33 2000: registering 'first_node:1', port 53566
Similarly, when you use net:ping from a node on another system, you should see some messages go by. If nothing seems to be happening on epmd, it's useful to scan for packets on the ethernet to see if the information is really getting out on the net. On unix systems you can do this with tcpdump:
# /usr/local/sbin/tcpdump port 4369 tcpdump: listening on le0 21:10:17.349286 grolsch.37558 > martell.4369: S 747683789:747683789(0)
9.10 Avoiding DNS
One fairly common obstacle to getting distribution to work is a broken DNS setup. One way to avoid that, or test for it, is to start distributed Erlang with IP addresses instead of hostnames, e.g. on one machine or window:
~ >erl -name firstname.lastname@example.com Erlang (BEAM) emulator version 5.5.5 [source] [64-bit] Eshell V5.5.5 (abort with ^G) (email@example.com)1> erlang:set_cookie('email@example.com', nocookie). true (email@example.com)2> net:ping('firstname.lastname@example.com'). pong
and in the other:
~ >erl -name firstname.lastname@example.com Erlang (BEAM) emulator version 5.5.5 [source] [64-bit] [async-threads:0] Eshell V5.5.5 (abort with ^G) (email@example.com)1> erlang:set_cookie('email@example.com', nocookie).
9.11 Why does my application die every second time I load new code into it?
Erlang's code replacement system is based around there being (up to) two copies of the code loaded at any time, these are called "old" and "new". When you load new code, the current version becomes "old" and the "old" code is thrown away. Any processes still running "old" code are killed.
You can check if there is any old code for a particular module still running:
Eshell V4.9.1 (abort with ^G) 1> l(erl). {module,erl} 2> code:soft_purge(erl). false
In this case old code is still running. You can also check if a particular process is running old code, by using erlang:check_process_code(Pid, Module).
9.12 Why can't I open devices (e.g. a serial port) like normal files?
Short answer: because the erlang runtime system was not designed to do that. The Erlang runtime system's internal file access system, efile, must avoid blocking, otherwise the whole Erlang system will block. This is not a good thing in a soft real-time system. When accessing regular files, it's generally a reasonable assumption that operations will not block. Devices, on the other hand, are quite likely to block. Some devices, such as serial ports, may block indefinitely. There are several possible ways to solve this. The Erlang runtime system could be altered, or an external port program could be used to access the device. Two mailing list discussions about the topic can be found here and here.
9.13 Why doesn't the stack backtrace show the right functions for this code:
-module(erl). -export([a/0]). a() -> b(). b() -> c(). c() -> 3 = 4. %% will cause badmatch
The stack backtrace only shows function c(), rather than a(), b() and c(). This is because of last-call-optimisation; the compiler knows it does not need to generate a stack frame for a() or b() because the last thing it did was call another function, hence the stack frame does not appear in the stack backtrace.
9.14 What do I do if I get an error when compiling Open Source Erlang?
Consider using a binary release (Debian GNU/Linux includes them in the woody and potato releases, windows binaries are on the download page ).
Ask for help on the mailing list, providing as many details as you can, including
your system details (OS, OS version, compiler version)
the error messages you get
any errors you got when you ran configure
9.15 Why do errors in the shell kill other processes?
Because the other processes are linked to the shell process.
Each time an error occurs in the erlang shell, the shell process exits and a new one is started:
1> self(). <0.23.0> 2> x - y. ** exited: {badarith,[{erl_eval,eval_op,3}, {erl_eval,exprs,4}, {shell,eval_loop,2}]} ** 3> self(). <0.40.0>
Thus all processes linked to <0.23.0> will receive exit signals. Unless they trap exits, they will exit too. One way to avoid this is avoid linking "background" processes to shell processes, for instance by using spawn instead of spawn_link.
9.16 Why do I get incorrect answers for floating-point operations?
Some floating point operations produce results which surprise some people. Here's an example:
5> 1.001 * 1000. 1000.9999999999999
This is not an error, it is a property of floating point arithmetic and it is not specific to Erlang. Any language which uses floating point arithmetic behaves this way.
http://floating-point-gui.de/ is a relaxed introduction to the topic. What Every Computer Scientist Should Know About Floating-Point Arithmetic goes into more depth.
Erlang's output formatting lets you specify the precision, for instance:
1> io:fwrite("~.3f\n", [1.001 * 1000]). 1001.000


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This article is more than 1 year old
Apple sneaks malware protection into Snow Leopard
Coverage goes only so far
Apple is dipping yet another toe into the anti-malware pond with a feature in the latest beta version of its forthcoming Snow Leopard operating system.
The protection was quietly added earlier this month to Snow Leopard 10A432, the most recent build of the new version of Mac OS X that is due for release this Friday, according to someone who has tested the feature and asked not to be identified because pre-release versions of Snow Leopard come with non-disclosure clauses. A separate Snow Leopard tester said the functionality is included in 10A421a, an even earlier build.
The feature causes users who try to install applications known to be malicious to receive a pop-up window warning that the file will damage the computer and should be moved to the Trash.
At the moment, though, the feature offers fairly limited protection. Based on an analysis of a corresponding preferences file called XProtect.plist, it appears that the feature checks for only two known Mac trojans. And it only flags those files if they were downloaded from the internet using Entourage, iChat, Safari, and a handful of other applications, according to this person. Files that were downloaded using Skype and dozens of other net-facing applications aren't covered, nor are files on DVDs and thumb drives.
The revelations come as Apple has issued a fresh round of commercials that portray the Mac as a haven free of malware threats. "I want [a computer] that just works without thousands of viruses and a ton of headaches," a prospective customer complains in this spot. An Apple spokeswoman didn't return a phone call seeking comment.
The protection appears to build off one added to the Tiger version of Mac OS X that automatically opens some files after downloading. That feature scans files downloaded with Safari and several other applications and automatically opens them if they are deemed safe. The safety checks in this feature are much more limited than those used in full-fledged anti-virus software, said Dino Dai Zovi, co-author of The Mac Hackers Handbook.
So it's not surprising to find this latest addition lacking in many respects as well. According to the person who has seen the latest beta, it checks only for the RSPlug and iServices trojans. While those are two of the most active threats confronting Mac users, the number of malware programs actively targeting the OS is most likely measured in the hundreds, security experts said.
And as we said, users who try to install one of those two trojans will receive a warning only if the file was downloaded from the internet with a small number of applications, which in addition to Entourage, iChat, and Safari, also includes Mail, Firefox, and Thunderbird, according to the person who's seen the feature. The protection also appears to be lacking any means to scan an entire hard drive for malicious files.
But it wouldn't be difficult to beef up the offering. Updating the XProtect.plist file could be easily done the next time Apple issues an update. It's unclear how easy it would be make other applications work with the feature. Dai Zovi speculates they use an application programming interface supplied by Apple engineers.
It still remains to be seen what Apple's intentions are. To offer more comprehensive protection, the company would have to update the definitions a couple of times a week to stay abreast of variations that are regularly pumped into the ecosystem. It's questionable whether Mac aficionados would have the patience to download updates that often.
"This is something that's not in the Mac users' culture," said Dai Zovi, who has not yet tested Snow Leopard. "What would be awesome is if the user could plug in their own anti-virus like Clam for a minimally obtrusive anti-virus thing."
Intego, which provides anti-virus software for the Mac, offers a bare bones write up of the new feature here. ®
This story was updated to include the observations of a separate Snow Leopard tester.
A screenshot of the Snow Leopard malware warning

subset: commoncrawl


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Top 10 free agent medical issues for 2014
The NFL free agent season is upon us, as the three-day window for agents to negotiate with teams opened Saturday.
Players can have contact with and re-sign with their current club, but may not have direct contact with other clubs. This is significant because no visits or physical exams may occur until the start of the new league year. Players with injury or health issues will need to wait until March 11 at 4:00pm eastern to attempt to pass physicals.
The National Football Post has compiled its list of the top 50 free agents. Here, we will discuss the biggest injury issues for free agency.
At times during my 17 years as an NFL team physician, general managers would ask me to give a medical preview of free agents. Of course, I would perform a full physical prior to the signing of any contracts, but often they would want an early indication of medical status.
Below are medical assessments categorized into red, yellow and green light ratings. Red light indicates serious medical issues that would be cause to stop and reassess. These players don't necessarily fail, but certainly a long-term guaranteed contract is unlikely. Yellow light indicates slowing down and a definite need to place some importance on a physical prior to signing. Green light means a physical is still necessary, but likely perfunctory.
I have not examined any of the following players or seen their medical records. These evaluations are based on my knowledge as a practicing orthopedic surgeon/sports medicine specialist, experience as a head team physician and public reports. Like a traffic light, they are subject to change as more facts become known with a physical examination.
Spencer's knee and age will likely prevent a lucrative long-term deal.
1. Anthony Spencer, DE, Dallas Cowboys: Was placed on injured reserve early last season and underwent microfracture surgery for his left knee. This indicates significant down to bone articular cartilage loss. The procedure involves creating small holes in the bone to induce healing and scar cartilage formation. Even if the cartilage regrows, it is never as strong as the original. Microfracture surgery involves a minimum of six months recovery prior to running/jumping and impact activities.
Microfracture surgery is always a red flag. It indicates the presence of arthritis and that the end is near. Certainly the amount/location of cartilage damage and how well the scar cartilage regrows can delay that end.
Unfortunately for Spencer, I don't see a big money, long-term deal happening. Being 30-years-old doesn't help either. The best Spencer might hope for is a one year or non-guaranteed deal. Of course, if his physical looks good, that could change.
2. Henry Melton, DT, Chicago Bears: Tore his left knee ACL in Week 3. Melton is only five months from his reconstructive knee surgery and is likely not fully recovered yet. All ACL tears are not the same. The associated cartilage injury likely determines the ultimate outcome. This injury will likely affect his free agent value.
A full physical will be needed prior to determining Melton's status. If he is progressing well from ACL surgery and doesn't have associated damage, he could easily be upgraded. However, Melton's contract status definitely needs to wait until after a physical.
Bennett is one of the most highly-coveted 2014 free agent prospects.
3. Michael Bennett, DE, Seattle Seahawks: Exited the Week 4 Texans game on a stretcher, but was fortunate to have only suffered a neck muscle strain. Bennett returned to play the rest of the season and although his neck needs an examination, it is likely of little concern.
The bigger issue is a previously reported rotator cuff tear. Bennett apparently was signed to only a one-year deal in Seattle due to this injury sustained during the defensive end's Tampa Bay days.
The key here will be whether the tear is full or partial thickness. Full tears need surgery to prevent progression. Partial tears can linger and progress to full tears or heal and become asymptomatic.
Being that Bennett played a full season and hasn't undergone surgery, it is likely a partial thickness rotator cuff tear. In any case, it is something to pay attention to prior to signing.
4. Aqib Talib, CB, New England Patriots: Missed three games in 2013 with a hip injury and was knocked out of the AFC Championship game with a "non-structural" knee injury.
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick called the play on which Talib was injured one of the worst plays he's seen while involved with football. No penalty or fine was issued and the play was deemed legal.
The Patriots are known to be less than forthcoming in regards to injuries. Talib's hip injury should not be an issue, but a "non-structural" knee injury doesn't tell me much. As a former team physician, I would advise my team to be careful and to have a complete physical before signing.
5. Hakeem Nicks, WR, New York Giants: Has had a multitude of injuries, including previous surgery, to both his knee and foot. According to the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Nicks' drop in production over the last two seasons prompted letters written by his knee and ankle surgeons to support his healthy status.
Nicks' production has fallen off drastically over the last two years.
Due to federal patient privacy (HIPAA) laws, a doctor may only provide information with the consent of the patient. Therefore, these types of letters are universally positive since the player and agent would not authorize a negative report. That is why I don't put much stock in these letters.
In any case, I am not as worried about Nicks' knee or ankle, as last season's main issue was abdomen/groin related. This creates worry of a sports hernia/athletic pubalgia injury. Nicks may have played in all but one game, but the wide receiver had a subpar year.
Nicks should get a full evaluation of his knee, ankle and pelvis. He may turn out to be fine, but abdomen/groin issues can linger and lead to surgical intervention.
6. Brandon Spikes, LB, New England Patriots: Played all 16 regular season games, but was placed on injured reserve for a chronic knee injury. It is certainly unusual to play the entire regular season, finish the final game and then land on IR prior to the playoffs.
There may have been confounding factors (reports of being late to a meeting) that led to this unusual circumstance. Per the "Belic hick Way," little is known about Spikes' recurring knee injury.
There is enough here to warrant a close look at Spikes' knee prior to signing him as a free agent.
7. Johnny Jolly, DL, Green Bay Packers: Suffered a C5-6 herniated disc and had cervical fusion surgery on January 10. Typically, single level cervical fusions are cleared for football. Every year there are usually more than a dozen NFL players with cervical fusions on active rosters. C5-6 is the most common level.
Unfortunately, the injury occurred late in the season, meaning Jolly is only two months removed from surgery. The bone fusion will take 3-4 months to heal. Jolly likely won't be healed for another month or two, but in the end, his neck surgery shouldn't be a big deal. It's likely that he will soon be converted to a green light.
Finley should be good to go for the 2014 season.
8. Jermichael Finley, TE, Green Bay Packers: Suffered a scary neck injury that temporarily left the tight end unable to move. Neck injuries and paralysis are serious matters, but I expect Finley to recover and be cleared by the time free agency officially starts on Tuesday.
The most important part of his recovery has already happened. Nerve and spinal cord recovery either happens quickly, within the first 24 hours, or not at all. Fortunately, Finley has recovered well from his spinal cord contusion. He had C3-4 fusion surgery on November 14 in order to protect his spinal cord from further injury risk of football. If Finley chose to retire, he would not have needed that surgery.
Cervical spine fusion typically takes 3-4 months for the bones to solidly heal together. Finley is now approaching the four-month mark. Despite the higher level (C3-4) of fusion, due to his excellent spinal cord recovery, I expect there to be an announcement of medical clearance any day now. Of course, this green light needs confirmation with a physical.
9. Branden Albert, OT, Kansas City Chiefs: Suffered a Week 13 cart-off injury to his left knee. The injury was a non-contact hyperextension that likely resulted in a bone bruise, but no surgery was required. Albert did return for the Chiefs' postseason loss at Indianapolis.
Of course, any team that signs the offensive tackle will perform a full physical, but I don't believe Albert's left knee will be a big issue. If he does have an issue, it would be more likely due to his on-and-off back problems.
10. Jared Veldheer, OT, Oakland Raiders: Suffered a preseason partial triceps tear, but recovered well enough to be activated off short term injured reserve in Week 13 in order to play in the final five games of the season.
The triceps muscle functions to extend the elbow and is an important injury for an offensive lineman trying to hold off pass rushers. However, once a triceps tear heals, there is typically little chance of re-injury. If it recurred, it would more likely be the triceps on the other side.
In summary, all players will undergo physicals before their new deals are finalized. This is the time of year when all team physicians are on standby awaiting notification of who may arrive for a free agent physical on March 11 at 4:01pm eastern time.
Follow David on Twitter: @profootballdoc
Dr. David Chao is a former NFL head team physician with 17 years of sideline, locker and training room experience. He currently has a successful orthopedic/sports medicine practice in San Diego.


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We just hit 15000 visitors.
This is the time to say some final words for this year.
Thanks for the readers who discovered us in 2005. And to those who remained from the previous years. and for those who are yet to come, thanks in advance.
I'm six pages into the zombie story, Ba is in full swing doing Casanova. Since it's the first time we try anything in a monthly schedule, we're yet to find out how it will affect the final look of the pages. So far, it looks great and it's only getting better. Not without it's bumps on the road, but that's pretty much every story. Creating is a complicated thing.
We never made so much comics as we did in 2005. And so far, 2006 looks like a pretty busy one.
One can hope, at least.
Thanks for watching and see you all next year.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Posted by Fábio Moon at 5:56 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Here's a quick opinion about someone who read ROCK 'n' ROLL. Scroll down a little, this guy reads a lot of comics.
Posted by Fábio Moon at 7:37 PM 0 comments
Run down for the next two weeks.
We have been working crazy around here. On an feature animation project. All to be delivered by the end of the week. It's a lot of work.
And then there's Christmas.
And in between Christmas and New Year's, there's that zombie story I was warming up to do. The script was a little late, but it came, and I"m having fun doing the thumbnails. The actual pages should be equally interesting.
And then it's 2006.
Posted by Fábio Moon at 2:51 PM 0 comments
Monday, December 12, 2005
Kind of sad looking.
More new characters. That's the only thing we seem to be doing these days. At least, that's how I feel. And the hardest part of it is to make sure all these characters - regular people, all of them - don't look generic. They're not the crowd, they're it. Once you see them surrounded by other people, they're the interesting ones, the ones you're suppose to look at, the ones who actually have something to say, even if it's something uninteresting and boring.
Because boring people say boring stuff.
Posted by Fábio Moon at 4:47 PM 0 comments
Thursday, December 08, 2005
No sitting around.
We have been really busy. Which is good, if you ask me. I rather have one hour of free time every day than just one hour of work done. I can really enjoy my free time if it's a rarity. And I really love my job.
So we have to finish some pages for next week. Ba has, not me. But we're a team around here, so I'm using the plural to keep him happy. To keep us happy.
Also, a cover needs doing.
Out of thin air as of right now.
I'll try to help as much as I can, but it's his show and I'm only enjoying the show from a safe, yet near, distance.
We're planning on drawing some 80 pages before the end of January, between him and myself, and some of it in color!
Right now, we're just happy that ROCK'n"ROLL is out and about in this world, meeting new friends. It's like we had a big baby to go with our smaller brazilian baby, and now we have twins. One is a bit bigger, but they're both beautiful.
It's a nice way to finish the year, and a great way to start on the next one. About the latter, it's going to be a killer.
Posted by Fábio Moon at 8:02 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
It's time to face the music.
Let's Rock and Roll.
This is the proof that we can make our dreams come true. We wanted to make comic books, and here's one. We made it on our own and, just by looking at it, the publisher decided to publish it.
Maybe if you look at it too, you'll decide you must have it.
Posted by Fábio Moon at 7:58 PM 0 comments


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This video is a political statement protected by Anonymous and Fair Use laws. It is NOT approved by the Romney and Obama campaigns, as they are both bought and paid for by corrupt short-sighted greed-addicted oligarchs.
Anyone who pays attention knows that our political system is corrupt and unsustainable. Our elections have devolved into auctions. Our future is sold to the highest bidder. It's the two-party oligarchy versus the people.
The presidential debates are a tragic joke on the American people, a puppet show lacking legitimacy. Our government is rigged against hardworking Americans through blatant political bribery: campaign finance, lobbying and the revolving door between Washington and the world's most corrupt corporations.
Send a message to the old world aristocrats: This will be the last presidential election of the partisan dinosaur era. The meteor has hit. Both parties are now obsolete and will soon be swept into the dustbin of history. A critical mass of people are now aware and engaged. The evolution has begun…
We know of a new world.


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See here the Sideburn X Lennard Schuurmans Tee.
'It's not what you ride, it's how you ride it' has been a rallying cry since the beginning of Sideburn.
The front print is a two-colour design - almost black and warm grey, the back print is a single colour print. The T-shirt is Natural colour, not white, Gildan Ultra 100% preshrunk cotton. £18 plus post - S to XXL
If you like what you see buy the Tee in the Sideburn Webshop here and send me a pic of you wearing it :)


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A pretty little iris growing in the mountainous rocky outcrops of Jerusalem is the focus of a research collaboration stretching over 6,000 miles.
Scientists at the Chicago Botanic Garden and Jerusalem Botanical Gardens have combined their strengths to study the natural population structure, or remaining genetic diversity, of the rare Iris vartanii. What they have discovered may save the species, and others like it, into the future.
The finicky wildflower exists in just 66 locations in Israel's Mediterranean ecosystem—a dangerously low number. New road construction, urban expansion, and even afforestation in the area have reduced the availability of its natural habitat, fueling the crisis. For a plant that is endemic to, or only lives in, one narrow region, that spells trouble.
"Whenever you have a rare plant, you always have concern that as diversity starts to go down, the plant becomes more and more endangered," explained Garden volunteer and molecular biologist Eileen Sirkin, Ph.D. "The idea of diversity is that maybe one plant is more drought tolerant, another is more flood tolerant, and another is more wind tolerant, for example, so no matter what the conditions, there will be some survivors. As you narrow that, you are more and more in danger of losing that species."
Do the existing plants contain adequate genetic diversity? And to sustain the species, how many plants are enough? These are the central questions.
Gaining a Foothold
The scientific partnership between the two gardens was forged when Jerusalem Botanical Gardens' Head Scientist Ori Fragman-Sapir, Ph.D., who has monitored the species and studied its demography in the field, visited the Chicago Botanic Garden and met with Chief Scientist Greg Mueller, Ph.D. The two quickly saw an opportunity to combine Dr. Fragman-Sapir's research with the genetic capabilities of the Garden to answer those critical questions.
"Conservation genetics is one of the core strengths of our science program," said Dr. Mueller. "There are few other botanical institutions that have this expertise, especially internationally, so we are happy to collaborate on interesting and important plant conservation projects like this one."
"Conservation genetics is one of the core strengths of our science program," said Dr. Mueller. "There are few other botanical institutions that have this expertise, especially internationally, so we are happy to collaborate on interesting and important plant conservation projects like this one."
It wasn't long before Fragman-Sapir began shipping leaf samples to the Garden's molecular ecologist, Jeremie Fant, Ph.D. Together with his dedicated volunteer Dr. Sirkin, Dr. Fant set to work extracting data from the samples and documenting DNA fingerprints for each plant. Once they had a large enough data set, they compared and contrasted the findings—looking for similarities and differences among the plants' genetic compositions.
Gaining Altitude
To give scientists a point of comparison, Fragman-Sapir shared tissue samples from five populations (geographically separated clusters of plants) of a more commonly occurring related species, Iris histrio. By also documenting the DNA fingerprints of those plants, which grow in the surrounding area, but unlike Iris vartanii are not rare, Fant was able to determine how much diversity is needed to sustain the species.
Although the study subject is far away from the Garden, its challenges hit close to home. In 2013, Fant and Sirkin published findings from a similar study on a rare plant found at Illinois State Beach Park, Cirsium pitcheri. For that initiative, they examined the DNA of plants from a restored site at the beach and compared them to the DNA of naturally occurring plants across the range, measuring diversity.
"We're always working with rare and endangered species, and we collaborate with different people around the world to answer those questions," explained Sirkin.
The Summit
After completing a statistical analysis of Iris vartanii's DNA fingerprints, Fant made several encouraging conclusions but also issued an alert for continued attention.
The rare species' genetic diversity was similar to that of Iris histrio. "This does tell us that genetic diversity in Iris vartanii is not likely an issue," said Fant, who was not surprised by the conclusion. "Genetic diversity of any population is determined by the origins of the species, the age of the population, and proximity to the site of origin," he explained. "As both species likely arose locally [from Jerusalem northward to the Galilee and further on] and have been around for a very long time, they possess similar levels of genetic diversity."
Especially encouraging was that each Iris vartanii population had significant differences in their genes, likely a result of their longtime separation. The findings highlight that it is all the more valuable to conserve each population for their potential to contribute unique genes to future plants, according to Fant.
Although many populations showed high diversity and low inbreeding, which is preferred, others showed the reverse, increasing their potential risk of extinction. The latter group, explained Fant, may benefit from extra special monitoring and care.
To conserve the existing populations, attention will need to be given to their surrounding natural areas, explained Sirkin. "If you find a species that people like and you study it and say we need to do all these things to save it, you are not just saving one plant, you are saving an ecosystem, including all the other plants, insects, other invertebrates, lizards, birds, and whatever else is involved in that ecosystem," she said.
The findings and recommendations give land managers a clear direction for their conservation efforts, all because of one eye-catching plant that told the story of many.
©2015 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org


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Words by LargeUp Crew—
This Sunday, Aug. 19, the mighty Inner Circle will celebrate Jamaica's 50th with a New York City show at Central Park Summerstage. The epic lineup also includes fellow JA music legends the Mighty Diamonds and Israel Vibration. The event (which goes from 3p.m. to 7p.m.) is free for all, but to make it even sweeter, we've teamed with the Bad Boys of Reggae to offer a prize pack for five lucky winners. Here's what each winner will get:
—VIP, skip-the-line admittance for you + a guest
—VIP reserved bleacher seating for you + a guest
—A pair of drink tickets
—An Inner Circle Presents: The Reggae Wave compilation CD
—A limited edition Inner Circle x Slightly Stoopid "No Cocaine" 7″ vinyl single
—A pair of autographed Inner Circle press photos
+ Plus More LargeUp and Inner Circle swag (stickers, pins, etc.)
To enter to win, tell us the name of your favorite Inner Circle song in the comments to this post. Winners will be contacted by e-mail, so be sure to leave your correct e-mail address while filling out the comment.


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Shauna Sand -- the former wife of Lorenzo Lamas -- has just filed a sexual battery lawsuit against a man who once accused Lindsay Lohan of theft.
According to the lawsuit ... Shauna was hired as Sam Magid's personal assistant for somewhere between $10k and $20k a month. According to the suit, back in October, on her first day at work, Shauna went to pick up food for Magid and his guests and when she got to his house with the vittles ... he allegedly grabbed her breasts and demanded that she have sex with him.
Shauna claims she struggled as she rejected his demands. She claims he then threw money at her and ordered her to leave his house.
She claims he continued the alleged harassment by sending her text messages ... threatening her.
Magid has a Lindsay Lohan connection. She went to his house and partied for several days in August of last year. On a night Lindsay was there, $100,000 of watches and sunglasses were allegedly stolen from the house and Lindsay was named as a suspect. Magid -- who was a long-standing friend of Lohan's -- later recanted the story and said nothing was taken.
We could not reach Magid for comment.


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ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. - Progress Energy Florida has selected Lake County's Florida Energy and Aerospace Technology (FEAT) Park as its first Site Readiness location in Florida.
According to Marc Hoenstine, economic development manager for Progress Energy Florida, FEAT Park was chosen after a comprehensive site inventory assessment of more than 60 sites. FEAT Park will be actively marketed to site selectors and corporate decision makers this year.
The Site Readiness Program is the cornerstone of the Duke Energy Business Development Team's work. It is designed to identify, evaluate, improve and increase awareness of industrial sites in the company's service territory. The goal of the program is to increase the inventory of industrial sites and to advance their state of readiness.
"This program is a progressive effort toward making communities more competitive and attractive for new industry and jobs. Even more, it's in sync with our strategy for diversifying the state's economy, which involves identifying and promoting communities' marketable attributes for business recruitment," said Florida Secretary of Commerce Gray Swoope, who serves as president and CEO of Enterprise Florida, Inc., the state's principal economic development organization. "Florida as well as Lake County will benefit."
"We are always very happy to do business with successful companies like Progress Energy," said Leesburg Mayor David Knowles. "Our property is a blank slate with a lot of great potential. We are looking for ideas and innovation from the Site Readiness Program to help pull it all together and create new development and new jobs."
The FEAT site was selected because its proposed use is a clear fit with the company's targeted industries and its size is ideal.
The Duke Energy Business Development Team is a direct result of the Progress Energy Florida merger with Duke Energy. Economic development is crucial to Florida's recovery, and the company is committed to helping boost economic activity.
"The Duke Energy Business Development Team is working hard to help market our Florida service territory nationally and internationally as the right place to do business," said Alex Glenn, state president, Progress Energy Florida. "Since July, the team has extensively visited and analyzed our Florida service territory."
"This early work has already produced results with six new potential companies being referred to us in Florida."
Targeted industries include aviation/aerospace, automotive, bio/life sciences, data centers, food and beverage, general manufacturing and plastics.
Ideal candidates for the Site Readiness Program are Progress Energy served industrial sites of 75 acres or more. A qualified site can be either a single site suited for a large industrial facility or a potential industrial park (multi-tenant site).
The program includes:
- Initial assessment of industrial sites (existing or potential) from the perspective of a top site-selection consultant, McCallum Sweeney Consulting.
- A more detailed "buildability" assessment and development of conceptual plans for the sites by expert land-use and site planners. HRP Associates will create the FEAT Park buildable study.
- A meeting with the county to present McCallum Sweeney's findings and a detailed final report on the site, including a presentation of the final drawings and conceptual by HRP Associates.
For more information about the Progress Energy economic development efforts, visit: http://www.duke-energy.com/economic-development/economic-development.asp#.
Progress Energy Florida
Progress Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), provides electricity and related services to more than 1.6 million customers in Florida. The company is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Fla., and serves a territory encompassing more than 20,000 square miles including the cities of St. Petersburg and Clearwater, as well as the Central Florida area surrounding Orlando. Progress Energy Florida is pursuing a balanced approach to meeting the future energy needs of the region. That balance includes increased energy-efficiency programs, investments in renewable energy technologies and a state-of-the-art electricity system. More information is available at www.progress-energy.com.
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a Fortune 250 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available at: www.duke-energy.com.
Florida Energy and Aerospace Technology Park
The Florida Energy and Aerospace Technology (FEAT) Park is a City of Leesburg-owned site providing more than 640 acres of prime property targeting the city's economic development emphasis on aviation, aerospace and new energy development.
The site borders the interchange of Florida's Turnpike - a direct access road crossing through much of the state - and Lake County Road 470.
More information is available at http://www.leesburgflorida.gov/feat/index.aspx.


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Nestlé Purina is making it easier for sporty people and their dogs to exercise together with the launch of a new range of performance nutrition pet food.
The company is rolling out Purina Pro Plan Sport in the United States to help hone the fitness levels of healthy dogs that already enjoy an energetic lifestyle with their owners.
The range, which has been developed by animal scientists and nutritionists, comprises three different formulas: 'active' for dogs that exercise every day, 'advanced' for more athletic dogs, and 'performance' for those taking part in competitions.
The products are complemented by a new, free mobile application called 'Purina Pro Plan P5' that allows dog owners in the US and Canada to develop and track training activities with their pets.
Targeted nutrition
"More and more people in the US are taking part in activities such as half marathons and triathlons, and more of them want to exercise with their dogs," said Steve Crimmins, Chief Marketing Officer for Nestlé Purina Pet Care.
"There are already many performance nutrition products to help people excel in sport.
"By giving dogs the right kind of nutrition, we can help promote their athletic abilities in the same way."
Keeping fit
To inspire more people to keep fit with their pets, Nestlé Purina will be organising a series of special events across the United States in 2013.
Purina Pro Plan 'performance camps' will give dog owners a chance to learn more about dog sports, while the Purina Pro Plan 'Incredible Dog Challenge' competition will feature dogs taking part in events such as 'flying disc', diving and agility.
The Purina Pro Plan brand will also be sponsoring a variety of five kilometre running races for people and their dogs, and other pet-friendly runs and walks around the country.
Natural endurance
"Dogs have naturally high endurance, but unlike humans their main source of energy comes from fat, not carbohydrates," Mr Crimmins continued.
"The Purina Pro Plan Sport products contain targeted levels of protein and fat to help promote strength and endurance to meet active dogs' varying energy needs.
"Our aim is to help dogs and their owners go from 'good' to 'great'."
Exercise partners
Purina Pro Plan Sport is the latest innovation from Nestlé Purina to help pets and their owners improve their fitness together.
Last year the company teamed up with Nestlé's Jenny Craig weight management business to launch Project: Pet Slim Down, a unique programme to help pet owners and their four-legged friends in the United States shed excess pounds.
Purina Pro Plan Sport is one of four new categories of Purina Pro Plan dog food designed to help dogs reach their full potential. The others: Savor, Focus, and Select, will also be available in the United States this year.


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So some of you readers have discovered my Tumblr Ask Box is available for Anonymous questions. I don't respond to every single one if they don't ask a question specifically, but I do try to answer questions as much as possible.
Today I got this question:
Hi, I hope I'm not bothering, but I need advice, in regards to writing and race, and I hope it's alright to ask! My white friend and I are trying to write a steampunk novel and she's failing so bad at race issues. She's the white liberal - racism is bad people doing bad things (but always redeemable once they ~understand~!), racism is caused by stupid people, always look forward never address the past grievances, interracial marriage solves everything! It's so frustrating.
I'm afraid of correcting her because I don't want to hurt her feelings, and afraid that she'll see be as 'one of those poc' and hate me. I've tried to get her to read your steampunk blog (which I love and thank for its existence!), but she…weird about it. I know that at this point our friendship is suspect, but she is someone I love dearly and I can't help it. And I've put so much effort into this project, I don't want to give up now. Is it at the point where I should let her be, or is there something I can do to approach this topic? Thank you so much, sorry for the length. Have a good day!It is an unfortunate state of affairs when you have to ask people on the Internet for advice on how to deal with racists on such an intimate basis. We all know people like this. Hell, I've been that colorblind liberal! How does one deal with that kind of person? I don't have all the answers, not having all the details, so here's my general tack on the situation:
Firstly, you have my deepest sympathies. This is where it's clear that it's the people closest to you who cannot be trusted sometimes.If you were one of those colorblind liberals in recent times, what made you think differently about POC's struggle? If you're a POC who has one of these friends, what did you do, or would have done differently?
Secondly, you need to ask yourself if you really need her input on this novel, or if there is someone else you can collaborate with without so many issues.
Thirdly, if the answer is, yes you need her, you need to ask yourself what your boundaries are: what can you continue to tolerate from her? What WILL you continue to tolerate from her?
Then lay out your boundaries. Sit down with her and have a firm talk about it. Tell her to read my blog and stop being weird about it, or else it will damage your trust level and raise your anxieties about this project.
Because as much as you are afraid of hurting your feelings? It's also really clear that she's continuously hurting yours. If you keep letting this continue, it will irrevocably destroy your friendship because you will feel constantly fatigued at having to deal with her racism.
You need to be honest with her about the fact that her racism, which is getting to the point where it's just flagrant ignorance and dismissal of POC perspectives and no longer microaggressive, is hurting you, and you don't want this friendship to die.
You don't have to give up on this project; in fact, it sounds to me that the final result will be a lot stronger and more powerful without her racism tainting its process.
If she flounces, you will know where you ever stood in her esteem.
Good luck! There are other folk out there willing to help you along if you need it.


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This is the old United Nations University website. Visit the new site at http://unu.edu
In the field of natural resources the balance between conservation and development. between economic pressures and environmental integrity, is notoriously difficult to achieve In rural areas of developing countries the tremendous lack of knowledge and scarcity of trained manpower makes this balance much more difficult. The Programme on the Use and Management of Natural Resources (NRP), one of three proarammes at the United Nations University, has these questions as a central focus. Using the tools of scholarship-research. advanced training, and the dissemination of information-the NRP has been engaged since early 1977 in setting up networks of research and training activities to stimulate provident and ecologically sound use of renewable natural resources. Concentrating its efforts in developing countries, where the problems are most severe and the need is greatest, the NRP is trying to help free these countries from their dependence on scientific expertise imported from developed countries that does not necessarily match their specific developmental or environmental situation. Through its networks the NRP is trying to catalyse scholarly collaboration and the exchange of experience on a ''South to South'' basis.
Following a UNU evaluation mission and several staff visits, Chiang Mai University was designated an associated institution of the UN University for work in the projects on agro forestry and highland-lowland interactive systems.
A major step in the formulation and initiation of activities was the convening of a workshop to discuss these topics in relation to Northern Thailand. This workshop, attended by numerous Thai and outside experts in fields as diverse as anthropology and forestry, geomorphology and agriculture, was held 1317 November 1978 in Chiang Mai, with Dr. Pisit Voraurai as the local organizer. During the workshop, 15 major papers were presented, an excursion was made to the Huai Thung Choa field station in the mountains 85 km northwest of Chiang Mai, and many formal and informal discussions took place.
The present publication is the proceedings of that Chiang Mai University-UNU workshop. Most of the papers presented are included. together with a summary of the discussions. This is not to be regarded as a comprehensive treatise on the environmental and human sciences and related developmental problems of Northern Thailand. Rather, it is intended as a source document and as a basis for the identification and development of an interdisciplinary research programme that should evolve over the next five to ten years. Furthermore, the UNU component is regarded only as a part of a much larger whole. Specifically, it is hoped that these proceedings will assist in achieving a wider collaboration among the many individuals and agencies working in Northern Thailand; facilitate the development of an applied research model that can be adapted for use in comparable environments over a much wider area, including Southeast Asia, appropriate parts of Africa, and Latin America; and help stimulate an increasing exchange of knowledge and experience for mutual benefit as the UNU network of associated institutions continues to expand.
Many individuals and agencies gave their time unsparingly to assist the workshop organizers: the host institution, Chiang Mai University. from its Rector. Professor Pradit Wichaiyadit. down to the many students and junior staff who performed myriad essential courtesies; the staff of the Royal Department of Forestry, Thailand; H.R.H. Prince Bhisatej Rajani and staff of the Royal Hill Tribe Development Project; the staff of the National Research Council of Thailand and of the ThaiAustralian Agricultural Project. We were privileged to be welcomed to Chiang Mai by H.E. Professor Sanya Dharmasakti, Chairman of the Privy Council of Thailand, and by Mr. Pratheung Sitthipongs. Governor of Chiang Mai Province.
Pauline A. Ives served as technical editor of these workshop proceedings. and Laura Koch, Jane Perry, and Linda Shook of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado, typed and retyped much of the original manuscript.
The editors would like to express a special debt of gratitude on behalf of both the United Nations University and Chiang Mai University to our colleagues who have devoted so much time to manuscript preparation, presentation, discussion, and advice. without which this publication would never have been possible.
Jack D. Ives
Sanga Sabhasri
Pisit Voraurai


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We found 1 episode of Public Function with the tag "pfsense".
027: Infinity Cough
18 June 2019 | 1 hr 11 mins
5g, ansible, arm, bash, beta, ccna, chrome canary, chromebook, chromium, citrix, cloud, compressor, cpu, dns, dynamics processor, e3, fiber chromecast ultra, firefox developer edition, fortnite, founder's edition, freenas, fuschia, geforce now, google, homebrew, i/o, ios 13, latency, limiter, mtg arena, mute switch, nas, noise gate, nvidia, openwrt, pfsense, pi-hole, reddit, router, seti, stadia, synology, tomato, vscode, wwdc, youtube live, zsh
This week, Albert and Greg talk games and gaming. Greg envisions a cloud-based computing future. Albert breaks down big gaming businesses. We talk hardware, Google Stadia, internet possibilities, and more!


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Amongst the many interesting things on the Great Works website is Peter Philpott's explanation of why he publishes on the internet. In it, he states that those who remain "emotionally involved with words on paper…have as much future as trained scribes post-Gutenberg." I agree with his overarching assertion that the internet is changing the way we access poetry and talk to one another about it. After all, you are almost certainly reading this on a screen, which is where I am writing it. I don't agree, however, that the printed page is doomed. Rather, I think information technology can reinvigorate it, both in the way that it is created and the way it is distributed. I also think that this applies particularly to experimental and innovative poetry.
I am just about young enough to say that I grew up with computers. I can certainly say that they have been around for all of my adult life. Yet I still, to use Philpott's phrase, remain "emotionally involved" with the book as artefact, with the physical rather than the virtual text. So too do the people I know in and around Manchester who are engaged with contemporary poetry - editors and small press publishers who all, whilst using the internet, still see the printed page in general and the book in particular as valid. What information technology has done, however, is to give us the keys to the citadel. I was reading recently about the upheavals in the Poetry Society in the 1970s, when Eric Mottram et al somehow sailed their Black Pearl through the reefs and under the radar, boarded the ship of state and seized the wheel. One of the most radical things they did was to make the presses, the physical machinery for producing texts, available to anyone with the ideas and inclination to use it. Such an act now seems impossibly romantic and oddly archaic, like a sit in or a march to Aldermaston. Yet we are now in the very situation Mottram was trying to engineer. Anyone with ideas and inclination can produce a book and, more importantly, thanks to the evolution of print on demand, they can produce the book they want when they want it. By chance, I happened to appear on a Radio 4 programme about the small press scene a while ago. One of the other participants was Michael Schmidt, who declared himself of the opinion that the proliferation of publications facilitated by technological change is a bad thing. His argument seems to be that there should be an elite, a crack team of cultural arbiters who decide what to blast and bless, who know where the ladders are and know when to lower them and when to pull them up – gatekeepers, keymasters, curators, custodians. On one hand, you can see his point. Print on demand and the vanity press are, if not exactly bedfellows, certainly roommates. On the other, why should writers always have to seek approval, to be supplicants holding out bowls for a ladleful of gruel? Visionaries and innovators are, by definition, out of synch with their times. They are not the sort of people who find their way into Waterstones or onto the library shelf amongst the Armitages, Duffys, Copes and 100 Poems To Clean Your Teeth To. I am not saying that such people have not had an outlet before – far from it. But technology has made it easier than ever to produce high quality texts which can be the stuff from which alternative worlds are constructed, the currency of local scenes with their own phenomena and epiphenomena, their own flora and fauna.
In addition to changing the way that the printed page is distributed, technology can also radicalise the way that is created. Philpott's reference to scribes is oddly apt, for in some ways that is what technology has made us . I grew up around the corner from the site of St. Peter's monastery on the banks of the Wear where Bede spent his formative years and I'm beginning to think all those childhood trips to Durham cathedral to stand next to what may or may not be his bones did something to me. After years of seeing the page as simply a place to put words, my increasing familiarity with computers has gradually transformed my practice to the extent that I now view myself as a producer of illuminated manuscripts, incorporating images and non-verbal figures to work in a way that is as much about the eye as the ear and the voice. The screen, far from being a stifling, standardising influence, can be liberating, making the page a playground and a palette. Technology can make new forms. It can also make the old forms new.


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When Bemis Corp. saw the
pension liability of its defined-benefit plan
soar in late 2005 as a result of falling interest
rates, the consumer-products packaging
manufacturer decided to limit the accrual of
new benefits to employees who were over 40
and had at least 20 years of service with the
company. Other employees from then on
would be eligible to put pretax savings into a
new 401(k) plan, with Bemis contributing a
share of its annual profits on their behalf.
The expectation is that the so-called
soft freeze of its defined-benefit plan will
halve the company's annual pension expense
after eight years. In the months since the
passage of the Pension Protection Act of
2006 in August, other companies have
announced similar actions. DuPont, for
example, plans to reduce the benefits in its
pension plan for existing employees and
close it to new ones as of January 1, 2008,
cutting its costs by roughly two-thirds. Tenneco
and Blount International plan similar
changes and expect to save $11 million and
up to $23 million annually, respectively.
Spurring this trend is a recent move by
the Financial Accounting Standards
Board, which issued the first of two sets of
rules to require corporate plan sponsors to
take pension assets and liabilities out of
their financial-statement footnotes and
include them in their reported results (see
"Mismatched from the Start" at the end of this article). Taken together, the
new rules enacted by Congress and FASB
"will make the true cost of defined-benefit
plans transparent to investors and accelerate
the closing of defined-benefit plans by
financially healthy plan sponsors," predicts
Zvi Bodie, a professor of finance and economics
at Boston University.
Indeed, that transparency may just nail
the coffin shut on traditional pensions.
According to Bodie, the combination of
stiff new funding requirements for traditional
plans and higher premiums on government
pension insurance creates further
disincentive for offering traditional
benefits. And while the law is designed to
improve the chances that companies will
make good on existing pension promises,
it may also encourage them to freeze or at
least limit those promises and shift investment
risk to employees through 401(k)s
and other defined-contribution arrangements —
as firms like Bemis have done. Basically, says Bemis's treasurer, Melanie
Miller, "the law allows companies to do
what they've wanted to do for some time."
No Real Obligation
It's no secret that defined-benefit plans
have been losing favor among corporate
plan sponsors. The percentage of full-time
employees of large and midsize companies
who take part in defined-benefit
plans fell from 80 percent in 1985 to 33
percent at the end of 2003, while those in
defined-contribution plans climbed from
41 percent to 51 percent. What's different
now is that that shift has been further
propelled by new legislation.
Sponsors now have the ability to automatically
enroll employees in 401(k) plans
and are protected from fiduciary liability
when providing investment advice, even
if it's from advisers with conflicts of interest.
The law also rules that cash-balance
plans are not age-discriminatory as long
as they follow guidelines that were established
to protect employees. As a result,
says Tonya Manning of Aon Consulting,
cash-balance plans are "now an option." In
effect, the law reverses a 2003 court decision
against IBM's conversion of a
defined-benefit plan to a cash-balance
plan, which cast a pall on similar moves
by other sponsors. The Pension Protection
Act does "a lot to make cash-balance
plans viable," she adds.
Tightened funding rules for defined-benefit
plans make the alternatives even
more appealing. Although the new
requirements will be phased in over the
next five years, at the end of that period
companies' plans must remain fully funded
to get the backing of the Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corp., the federal agency
that insures defined-benefit plans. Previously,
such plans needed to be only 90
percent funded at some point in the ensuing
30 years to qualify for PBGC coverage.
Sponsors whose plans are considered
underfunded (between 65 and 80 percent
funded) face larger increases in what they
must contribute, while those with plans in
the worst shape (where funding is less
than 65 percent and the plan is "at risk")
will be subject to penalties.
To make matters worse from the perspective
of costs, sponsors' ability to
smooth the effects of underfunding when
determining their status has been severely
curtailed. The law cuts the number of
years that companies register changes in
the value of their pension assets and liabilities
from five years to two in the case
of assets and from four years to two in
that of liabilities. Consequently, says
Stephen Metz, a principal in PricewaterhouseCoopers's
human-resources services
group, "the biggest potential negative
[of the law] is tremendous volatility in
cash funding requirements."
What Is Fair?
For their part, most companies seem
reluctant to make sweeping changes right
away. A recent survey of large and midsize
companies by Towers Perrin found
that only 17 percent of the 126 respondents
say they will close their defined-benefit
plans to future hires, and only 5
percent admit they will freeze their plans
as a result of the new law. Almost half
intend to maintain their current plans
without cutting benefits. Moreover, such
companies as DuPont and Tenneco insist
that their plan changes were in the works
months before the law was enacted.
The sensitive nature of making any
changes to retirement plans is one reason
for caution. Companies that have moved
away from defined-benefit plans so far contend that defined-contribution
arrangements are worthy alternatives. DuPont's change is designed in part "to
modernize the design of our savings and
retirement plans for a new generation of
employees, many of whom want more
direct control and portability in their benefits,"
says James C. Borel, senior vice president
for human resources.
Yet DuPont saw fit to soften the blow
for employees shut out of its defined-benefit
plan by doubling the amount of an
employee's 401(k) contribution that it will
match, from 50 percent to 100 percent, up
to a maximum of 6 percent of pay. Similarly,
Tenneco has started a second
defined-contribution plan to which the
company alone contributes 2 percent to
10 percent of an employee's salary, with
the percentage rising with his or her age. "Older employees suffer the most deterioration
in benefits" as a result of the company's
defined-benefit freeze, says Tenneco
CFO Kenneth Trammell. "We wanted
to offset part of that with higher contributions
for them."
Still, Trammell admits, "we simply
couldn't afford to pay for and continue to
fund a level of benefits that was overly
generous to older employees." Trammell
notes that Tenneco's changes in plan
design will reduce the proportion of preretirement
salary that employees aged
approximately 45 to 50 receive, from
roughly 150 percent to 100 percent
(assuming average returns).
Death Reports Premature?
How many companies will ultimately follow
suit remains to be seen. In fact, some
observers, such as Bill McHugh, head of
the strategic investment advisory group
for JP Morgan Asset Management in New
York and the former treasurer of Novartis
Corp., actually believe the new rules "will
lead to a stronger structure" for defined-benefit
plans, citing the tremendous deterioration
in their financial condition in
the past six years. Funding levels for the
200 largest corporate plans plummeted
from 122 percent of liabilities at the end
of 1999 to 86 percent at the end of last
year. But as a result of the tougher funding
and accounting rules, McHugh expects
plan sponsors to exercise tighter control
over the plan's risk exposures and their
impact on the corporation's results and
balance-sheet exposures. He predicts a
much clearer focus on duration analysis
to better match the terms of plan assets
with those of their liabilities.
There's another consideration: the
financial benefits of freezing traditional
plans could be outweighed by the negative
impact on employee productivity if companies
are thereby unable to attract and
retain the talent they need, warns Mike
Pollack, a consultant with Towers Perrin.
To date, however, companies moving
away from defined-benefit plans are confident
that they can do so without losing
key employees. In a statement outlining
the changes to its retirement plans,
DuPont suggested that the doubling of its
401(k) match "enhances the company's
ability to compete for talent." Adds Mary
Dineen, DuPont's manager of global benefits:
"Many younger employees, particularly
college graduates, are looking for
portability [of benefits] and control over
investments," which only defined-contribution plans provide. "They don't see
value in defined-benefit plans," she asserts.
Still, any accelerated trend away from
defined-benefit plans doesn't solve the
larger issue of who should pay for retirement.
Despite or perhaps because of the
new rules, U.S. Comptroller General
David M. Walker recently complained
that "issues of coverage and plan design
remain largely unanswered, and the
appropriate balance of responsibility for
retirement among employers, government,
and workers remains unclear."
Ronald Fink is a deputy editor of CFO.
Investment Policies
Mismatched from the Start
One issue that the Pension Protection Act of 2006 doesn't address is the asset-liability mismatch that exists in most pension plans. Such experts as Boston University
finance and economics professor Zvi Bodie, charge that there is a mismatch between
the benefits promised to employees and the pension asset portfolios used to finance
them. The law, he wrote in an open letter after it was passed in August, "does not
even acknowledge" that the problem exists.
In fact, Bodie has long favored action to charge companies higher government
insurance premiums if they do not match their pension assets to their liabilities. He
also favors a change in the rules for reporting pension expense to prevent companies
from using expected rather than actual returns on pension assets.
Bodie isn't alone in worrying about this mismatch. "The concern is that companies
can't constructively use the surplus from equities," observes Mike Pollack, a
consultant with Towers Perrin. And in an October speech at a meeting of the International
Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, U.S. Comptroller General David M.
Walker went so far as to say that by ignoring the fundamental mismatch between
defined-benefit plan assets and liabilities, the act "will likely not reverse long-term
decline in the defined-benefit system."
Yet it's possible the law will encourage plan sponsors to invest more in debt
and less in equity when funding their plans. That's because it requires companies to
discount defined-benefit plan liabilities based on the rate of cash flow from an index
of corporate debt of varying terms, rather than from an index of 30-year Treasuries.
The effect, say some observers, is to encourage a shift to less-risky, shorter-term
investments (that is, bonds). While Bemis Corp., for one, currently invests 80 percent
of its plan assets in equities and 20 percent in bonds, treasurer Melanie Miller
says the company may revisit its investment policy in light of the new law, and consultants
expect other companies invested heavily in equities to do the same. Meanwhile,
the second phase of FASB's pension-accounting project will address such issues as
whether to deconsolidate plan assets and liabilities, which would mean that gains and
losses on assets may no longer be included in corporate income and cash flow. — R.F.


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Create a Website Account - Manage notification subscriptions, save form progress and more.
Show All Answers
The prospect of subdividing a residential property is complicated and depends on various factors. When subdividing, the newly created lots must comply with the below lot areas specific to the zoning district of the property, as well as comply with the below lot width requirements. If the subdivided lots can meet the requirements for their specific zoning district, than you can proceed to contact the Development & Planning Services Department to further discuss a request to subdivide a property. For more information, review the
Sharps / used needles can be placed next on top of your refuse cart on your regularly scheduled garbage pick up day in a securely taped or closed milk jug, laundry detergent jug, or sharps container. In addition, the container must be clearly marked "Sharps" with a dark permanent marker. For questions on sharps disposal, contact the Village Manager's Office at 847-664-4010.
As an alternative, the Village also has created a Zoning Map (PDF)
A building permit can be obtained by visiting the Development and Planning Services Department located on the 2nd floor of the Village Hall at 1225 Cedar Lane. For more information, contact 847-664-4050 or visit the
If you have observed that these restrictions are not being met, you may inform the Village by making a Citizen's Request.
For residential zoned properties, simply click on the Article III - Single Family Residential Districts link on the Northbrook Zoning Code webpage. Bulk standards will be located in Section 3 to 110 of the Zoning Code, or page. III-6. Review Zoning Code.
The Village has regulations that prohibit weeds and grass from growing to an average height of more than 8 inches. The Village does not have regulations regarding the maintenance of landscaping bushes and trees. View the Village's
To register a concern, residents may submit a form through GONorthbrook online by completing and submitting a request. If you provide your email address on the form you will be sent updates regarding any enforcement activity that takes place. Residents may also call the Village at 847-272-5050, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The Village does not have regulations specifically addressing rental properties. If you are having problems with your rental unit, please visit the
All Fire related inspections must be scheduled with the Fire Department at 847-272-2141. Building & Site Inspections must be scheduled by contacting the Permit Coordinators.
Inspections are required at different stages of a project to inspect work before it is covered up. For example, footing inspections are required after excavation and forming is completed, but before concrete is laid. Rough-in, framing and insulation inspections are required before walls or ceilings are closed in.
Projects requiring a plan review typically require the payment of an application fee deposit at the time the application is made. The remaining cost is not paid until after the permit is approved and the applicant is notified of the final amount. Permit fees for large scale projects are typically calculated based on information such as square footage, number of fixtures, estimated cost of construction, etc. The final permit fee is paid to the Development and Planning Services Department at the time the permit is issued. For more information, contact the Development and Planning Services Department at 847-664-4050.
- Over the counter (sewer repair, electrical only, etc.) up to 24 hours- Small Projects (Decks, sheds, basements, kitchens/baths, parking lot resurfacing, etc) up to 10 business days- Large Single Family Residential (SFR) Projects (Additions or large scale remodeling) take up to 15 business days- New Single Family Residence or Large Commercial Remodeling can take up to 20 business days- New Commercial Building Negotiated time frame (size and scope dependent)- Reviews of "Re-submittals" from plan review comments generally take 10 business days
*What can you do to improve the total time it takes to obtain your permits? You can use our submittal guidelines and other informative handouts to ensure that you have included all the information necessary for your permit review.


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This looks like a pretty cool toy to build. At the top of the cylinder is a fan that removes air from the center column of the device creating a low pressure zone. This air is then blown back into the cylinder to feed the rotation. Besides the regular construction supplies you'll need a squirrel cage fan and speed control. The most expensive part of this project is the mist generator. The nice thing is, you can construct the entire device and make sure it's functioning before you dump money into the mister. I saw a really large one of these last year at NCAR in Boulder, CO. It was pretty cool, but naturally I was there to see the Cray-1A [via]. Lately we've been creating our own path of destruction so we're hosting the pdf which was originally found at weather-photography.com.
[thanks seesoe]


text:
User Manual
Barre d'Outils Latérale
The Side Toolbar on the left vertical side of the Browser offers global folder operations and Browser features to quickly make changes and add functionality without interrupting the DJ's work flow.
- FAVORITE FOLDER. Marks a specific folder as a Favorite (creates shortcut) and adds it to the Folder List for quick access (monitored)
- VIRTUAL FOLDER. Creates a Virtual Folder (unmonitored) which provides the ability to add files into a folder without changing their physical location on the hard drive.
- FILTER FOLDER. Creates a Filter Folder (monitored) which will organize (filter) files based on predefined criteria.
- GOTO LAST FOLDER. Returns to the last used folder.
- BROWSER OPTIONS. Displays a menu with the following options:
Show Only Shows or hides Music, Video or Karaoke files. Display Options Display List as Choose between the List View (default) and Grid View with large icons (for Touchscreens) Font Size Choose between Small, Medium, and Big fonts. Padding Provides the ability to increase/decrease the spacing (padding) between browser lines. Choose from None, Small, Medium or Big. Reset Root Folders Displays any folders that have been hidden. Database Remove missing files from Search DB Clean the Search Database from files that no longer exist. Create Database Backup Creates a zip file backup of the database, folders, history, mappers, pads, playlists and settings in the folder Documents/VirtualDJ/Backup on your computer. Restore Database Backup Restores database, folders, history, mappers, pads, playlists and/or settings from backups that have been created. Export browser view Exports what is currently displayed in the browser (including fields) to a .csv file (that can be opened as a spreadsheet in softwares that support it) or a .html file (for web use). - FONT RESIZER. Increase or decrease the size of the Browser font with a single button*.
*a dual button configuration for individual increase and decrease sizing can be changed in Options by changing browserFontSizeButtons to Yes - BROWSER ZOOM. Increases the size of the Browser and reduces the size of the decks.
Creating A Database Backup
A database backup can also be created automatically over a certain period of days. To set this up go to Options automaticDatabaseBackupPeriod and input a value (number of days) into the field.
The location of the backup can also be pre-set by going to Options databaseBackupLocation and inputing the folder location.


text:
Slow Cooker Apple Cinnamon Rice Pudding
3 1/2 cups milk
1 cup jasmine rice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped apple
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Combine milk, rice, brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, salt and raisins in a slow cooker on high; cook 1 1/2 hrs, stirring once or twice. Stir in apple and vanilla, and cook an additional 30 minutes. Serve warm.


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Animal Wildlife | Dugong | The dugong is a large marine mammal found in the warm waters surrounding Indonesia and Australia. Although the dugong can be found widely throughout the Indo-Pacific tropics, the highest population of the dugong is concentrated around northern Australia. Although the dugong looks extremely similar to a manatee, the two are different species. The dugong and the manatee are very closely related and can look almost identical until you look at their tail. The tail of the dugong is typically forked like the tail of a shark, where the tail of the manatee is broad and flat, and slightly more flipper looking than fin looking.
Dugongs are smaller than manatees with the average adult dugong reaching lengths of around 3 meters and weigh nearly 400 kg, which is about the same as a large cow. The front flippers of the dugong can be as much as half a meter in length. It is thought the legends of mermaids may have originated when sailors from a distance glimpsed dugongs swimming in the water, and mistook them for half-human half-fish creatures. These mermaid legends are also said to be true of the dugongs larger cousin, the manatee.
Dugongs inhabit the warm shallow waters, and despite their large size, dugongs are strictly herbivorous animals and have been referred to as the cows of the sea. Dugongs graze on sea grasses and aquatic plants that grow in abundance in the tropical shallows. Dugongs eat large amounts of sea plants and often leave feeding trails behind of bare sand and uprooted sea grass. Female dugongs give birth to just one calf about once every five years. The baby dugong is born underwater in the warm shallows, where the baby dugong is immediately able to swim to the surface in order to take its first breath. When the baby dugong is born, the dugong calf is about a meter in length and weighs about 20 kg. The dugong calf will stay close to its mother until the baby dugong is about 2 years old.
Dugong populations are constantly decreasing, with many dugongs being accidental victims in large commercial fishing. Dugongs are now considered to be vulnerable animals but the dugong will commonly get older than 70 years of age. Dugong calves will not reach their full size until they are about 15 years old.
Tags: dugong moreton bay, dugong extinction, adopt a dugong, le dugong resort, dugong endangered, endangered dugong, dugong conservation, australian dugong, okinawa dugong, dugong endangered species, dugong diving, dugong okinawa, save the dugong, dugong resort, dugong australia, dugong and manatee, dugong beach resort, manatee and dugong, dugong protection


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It is increasingly clear that we are initiating a sequence of dramatic events across our planet. They include habitat loss, an increased rate of extinction, global warming, the melting of ice caps and permafrost, an increase in extreme weather events, gradually rising sea levels, ocean acidification, the spread of oceanic "dead zones," a depletion of natural resources, and ensuing social strife.
These events are all connected. They come from a way of life that views the Earth as essentially infinite, human civilization as a negligible perturbation, and exponential economic growth as a permanent condition. Deep changes will occur as these idealizations bring us crashing into the brick wall of reality. If we do not muster the will to act before things get significantly worse, we will need to do so later. While we may plead that it is "too difficult" or "too late," this doesn't matter: a transformation is inevitable. All we can do is start where we find ourselves, and begin adapting to life on a finite-sized planet.
Where does mathematics fit into all this? While the problems we face have deep roots, major transformations in society have always caused and been helped along by revolutions in mathematics. Starting near the end of the last ice age, the Agricultural Revolution eventually led to the birth of written numerals and geometry. Centuries later, the Industrial Revolution brought us calculus, and eventually a flowering of mathematics unlike any before. Now, as the 21st century unfolds, mathematics will become increasingly driven by our need to understand the biosphere and our role within it.
We refer to mathematics suitable for understanding the biosphere as green mathematics. Although it is just being born, we can already see some of its outlines.
Since the biosphere is a massive network of interconnected elements, we expect network theory will play an important role in green mathematics. Network theory is a sprawling field, just beginning to become organized, which combines ideas from graph theory, probability theory, biology, ecology, sociology and more. Computation plays an important role here, both because it has a network structure—think of networks of logic gates—and because it provides the means for simulating networks.
One application of network theory is to tipping points, where a system abruptly passes from one regime to another. Scientists need to identify nearby tipping points in the biosphere to help policy makers to head off catastrophic changes. Mathematicians, in turn, are challenged to develop techniques for detecting incipient tipping points. Another application of network theory is the study of shocks and resilience. When can a network recover from a major blow to one of its subsystems?
We claim that network theory is not just another name for biology, ecology, or any other existing science, because in it we can see new mathematical terrains. Here are two examples.
First, consider a leaf. In The Formation of a Tree Leaf by Qinglan Xia, we see a possible key to Nature's algorithm for the growth of leaf veins. The vein system, which is a transport network for nutrients and other substances, is modeled by Xia as a directed graph with nodes for cells and edges for the "pipes" that connect the cells. Each cell gives a revenue of energy, and incurs a cost for transporting substances to and from it.
The total transport cost depends on the network structure. There are costs for each of the pipes, and costs for turning the fluid around the bends. For each pipe, the cost is proportional to the product of its length, its cross-sectional area raised to a power α, and the number of leaf cells that it feeds. The exponent α captures the savings from using a thicker pipe to transport materials together. Another parameter β expresses the turning cost.
Development proceeds through cycles of growth and network optimization. During growth, a layer of cells gets added, containing each potential cell with a revenue that would exceed its cost. During optimization, the graph is adjusted to find a local cost minimum. Remarkably, by varying α and β, simulations yield leaves resembling those of specific plants, such as maple or mulberry.
A growing network.
Unlike approaches that merely create pretty images resembling leaves, Xia presents an algorithmic model, simplified yet illuminating, of how leaves actually develop. It is a network-theoretic approach to a biological subject, and it is mathematics—replete with lemmas, theorems and algorithms—from start to finish.
A second example comes from stochastic Petri nets, which are a model for networks of reactions. In a stochastic Petri net, entities are designated by "tokens" and entity types by "places" which hold the tokens. "Reactions" remove tokens from their input places and deposit tokens at their output places. The reactions fire probabilistically, in a Markov chain where each reaction rate depends on the number of its input tokens.
A stochastic Petri net.
Perhaps surprisingly, many techniques from quantum field theory are transferable to stochastic Petri nets. The key is to represent stochastic states by power series. Monomials represent pure states, which have a definite number of tokens at each place. Each variable in the monomial stands for a place, and its exponent indicates the token count. In a linear combination of monomials, each coefficient represents the probability of being in the associated state.
In quantum field theory, states are representable by power series with complex coefficients. The annihilation and creation of particles are cast as operators on power series. These same operators, when applied to the stochastic states of a Petri net, describe the annihilation and creation of tokens. Remarkably, the commutation relations between annihilation and creation operators, which are often viewed as a hallmark of quantum theory, make perfect sense in this classical probabilistic context.
Each stochastic Petri net has a "Hamiltonian" which gives its probabilistic law of motion. It is built from the annihilation and creation operators. Using this, one can prove many theorems about reaction networks, already known to chemists, in a compact and elegant way. See the Azimuth network theory series for details.
Conclusion: The life of a network, and the networks of life, are brimming with mathematical content.
We are pursuing these subjects in the Azimuth Project, an open collaboration between mathematicians, scientists, engineers and programmers trying to help save the planet. On the Azimuth Wiki and Azimuth Blog we are trying to explain the main environmental and energy problems the world faces today. We are also studying plans of action, network theory, climate cycles, the programming of climate models, and more.
If you would like to help, we need you and your special expertise. You can write articles, contribute information, pose questions, fill in details, write software, help with research, help with writing, and more. Just drop us a line, either here or on the Azimuth Blog.
John Baez and David Tanzer


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Lawyers representing three of the men charged in the New Delhi gang rape case said last week that they would enter pleas of not guilty on their clients' behalf. In most criminal prosecutions, that would be unremarkable. But the lawyers who stepped forward to represent the suspects in this case did so in the face of emotional protests by fellow attorneys, many of whom insisted that no one should defend those accused of such a terrible crime.
"There was a good response from the members, and they will not represent," the president of the local bar association had warned. So when attorneys V. K. Anand and Manohar Lal Sharma offered to serve as defense counsel, reported The New York Times, the result was "a chaotic courtroom scene in which other lawyers tried to shout them down."
Indians have been infuriated by the Dec. 16 attack, in which six men on a bus attacked a 23-year-old physical therapy student who was heading home from a movie with a male friend. She was repeatedly raped, and so savagely assaulted with an iron rod that her intestines were destroyed. Eventually the woman and her friend, who was also badly beaten, were thrown bleeding and naked into the street. She died of her injuries two weeks later.
Though violent crimes against women frequently go unpunished in India, this one galvanized a national outcry. The defendants may be the most hated men in India at the moment, and the enraged cries for vengeance go beyond lawyers vowing not to represent them. Of course there was never any question of their actually being denied the right to a legal defense. In India as in the United States, even the most despised defendants are entitled to due process of law. And a fair trial would be impossible without what our Bill of Rights calls "the assistance of counsel."
"I understand the sentiments of the people. But you cannot go by sentiments," Anand told Reuters after agreeing to take the case. "The accused have a right to justice just as the victim has." Indeed, it is typically those charged with the most horrific crimes, or those who are the target of seething public fury, whose need for effective legal counsel is most acute. Just as the right to free speech is meaningless if it doesn't protect the expression of cruel and loathsome ideas, so the right to counsel would be hollow if it didn't extend to cruel and loathsome clients.
But that doesn't mean individual lawyers are obliged to defend anyone, or that it's never fair to judge an attorney by the clients he is willing to represent.
I'm not suggesting that Anand and Sharma now abandon their clients. The Delhi lawyers who heckled them for agreeing to take the gang-rape case had no excuse for breaching courtroom etiquette. And if no lawyers had volunteered, the court would have had to appoint defense counsel, whose duty it would have been to zealously advocate for the clients assigned to them, no matter how odious or obviously guilty.
Yet other than cases assigned to a lawyer because due process requires it, why shouldn't attorneys expect to be characterized by the caliber of the clients they take? Lawyers who make a career out of representing the interests of, say, abortion clinics or gun manufacturers or labor unions can hardly complain if they come to be seen in the public eye as pro-abortion, pro-gun, or pro-union. Columnists are judged by the opinions they express, venture capitalists by the enterprises they bankroll, directors by the movies they make. An attorney who specializes in representing crooked politicians or jihadist plotters may have not a shred of personal sympathy for his clients' views. But reasonable people may draw a different conclusion.
"I personally despise criminals and always root for the good guys except when I am representing one of the bad guys," defense attorney Alan Dershowitz has written. In a fair legal system, even the worst bad guys — serial killers, child abusers, gang-rapists — are entitled to have a lawyer in their corner. But only certain lawyers seek out such clients.
Does that mean they're bad guys too? Maybe not, but people are apt to wonder.
Jeff Jacoby can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeff_jacoby.


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PocketGamer: ""If youre a strategy fan, you need this game"" PLATINUM AWARD!
TouchGen: ""So engaging its almost impossible to put down"" EDITOR'S CHOICE!
TouchArcade: ""It nails!"" 5/5 STARS! GAME OF THE YEAR RUNNER-UP AWARD!
AppSpy: ""Fantastically intriguing take on reversing the roles in a Tower Defense game"" VERDICT: GREAT!
IGN: ""A perfect challenge for any strategist"" NOMINEE FOR BEST MOBILE STRATEGY AWARD!
Award winning game Anomaly Warzone Earth HD turns tower defense on its head. This time you take control of the attacking force, pitting your heavily armored squad against the destructive towers of an alien horde. Carefully lead your squad through the invaders' defenses, shattering their towers and turrets with special weapons and power-ups in this groundbreaking new experience in tower offense.
- Experience a new type of tower defense game where you're the attacking side
- Think tactically and choose the right squad, route, special weapons, and plan to guarantee success in Tower Offense strategy
- Gather resources strategically to buy and upgrade new and more powerful units
- Play for hours on end in engaging modes of play: Story Campaign and Squad Assault modes
- Immerse yourself in the cutting-edge graphics and atmospheric soundtrack
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